Sports fan. Connoisseur of good music (especially on vinyl). Consumer of the finest craft beers. Environmental activist. History geek. Dudeist Priest. Hunter S. Thompson junkie. And I write a little. Mostly though, I’m a dad. But I am unlike my dad. I am still the breadwinner, but laundry, cooking, cleaning, grocery shopping, hugging, crying, disciplining and nurturing are also part of my routine. I am a domestic machine…I am, like many dads of my generation, The Domestic Warrior.

Monday, July 24, 2017

Unemployed Activist

Considering only football-related factors, there’s no
plausible explanation for his want of work.
Kaepernick boasts a career quarterback rating of 88.9, an impressive 72-30
touchdown passes to interceptions ratio and in February 2013 came within one
goal line play of winning the Super Bowl.
What has he done lately? Last
season, with a talent-challenged 49ers team, Kaepernick threw 16 touchdown
passes, just four interceptions and posted an impressive 90.7 quarterback
rating.

And yet, not one of the 32 NFL teams has signed Kaepernick
this offseason. To offer some context to
this curious situation, here are a few employed backup quarterbacks: Sean Mannion (Rams), Geno Smith (Giants), Kellen Clemens
(Chargers), Trevone Boykin (Seahawks) and, just for you Ravens fans, Ryan Mallett.

Smith’s career quarterback rating is 72.4. Clemens’s is 69.4 and he’s won just 8 of 21
starts. Mallett slept through practice,
missed a team flight and lost 3 of 4 starts with the Texans in 2015. I’m unacquainted with the rest. When we meet, introduce yourself as Sean
Mannion; I won’t know the difference.

So with no rational football argument for Kaepernick’s
unemployment, what’s the dirty little secret?
As The Dude said, “This is a very complicated case…you know, a lotta
ins, lotta outs, lotta what-have-you’s.”

Call it public relations, brand protection or sensitivity
to consumer concerns - package it however you want. Just be sure to acknowledge what cannot be
denied: Kaepernick remains unemployed because he decided to be socially and
politically active last season and kneel during the national anthem to raise
awareness of on-going oppression of minorities.
Now his on-field contributions don’t justify the perceived trouble
accompany his employment.

And with that, a statement: this isn’t about the issue
fueling Kaepernick’s protest. That’s
been debated, picked over, marinated and cooked to a crisp. Opinions are set. Hopefully it advanced our country in a
positive way.

What is worthy of further consideration is why
Kaepernick remains unemployed and what it says about tolerance of players
choosing to be athletes and activists – a combination that has produced change
agents like Jackie Robinson, Billie Jean King, Muhammad Ali, Kathrine Switzer
and Arthur Ashe. The NFL, with its stated
intent to “protect the shield”, didn’t want to be bothered and it might
be/probably is using Kaepernick to send this message: no unnecessary
controversy on our stage…we are the lords of pro football.

Don’t miss the hypocrisy. And really, how could you in time when
certain people can say denigrating things about, well, just about anyone and
suffer no consequences? The NFL waved
off Ray Rice and is apparently doing the same with Kaepernick while it continues
to employ the likes of Ben Roethlisberger, Adam Jones, Michael Floyd and Sheldon
Richardson, players with rap sheets that should be universally offensive and actually
do erode the NFL’s brand. Just last
year, Goodell, with a wink and a giggle, suspended Richardson for one game
after he went on a 143 mph joy ride in his Bentley. After being pulled over, police detected the
odor of marijuana, found a semi-automatic handgun and discovered a 12-year-old
passenger. What a role model! And while we’re pondering the transgressions
of NFL players, do not forget the league’s very dubious (mis)handling of
concussion data – likened to the tobacco’s industry’s statistical manipulations
– and the $765M settlement it paid out to former players in 2013.

Amidst this ethical and moral ooze, Kaepernick, a man
who has been genuine and thought-provoking about his anthem protest and who is an
all-star philanthropist, is the great villain the NFL would prefer to see
eradicated from its payroll? Whatever
brand protection the league sought post-protest has been undone by the wall Big
Brother NFL and Party leader Goodell built between Kaepernick and the football
field. Kaepernick shouldn’t be
ostracized, he should be appreciated for his social awareness and lauded for
courage to act (more athletes should).
At the very least, he should be employed. That he’s not is an indictment of the NFL and
the skewed value system it perceives exists in its patrons. Does it?